Prateek N. Viswanathan
Overview
Prateek Viswanathan is a trial lawyer focused on intellectual property litigation in federal courts and before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. He has worked on IP matters involving agricultural chemistry and devices, computer algorithms, medical devices, wind energy, plenoptic imaging, mobile payment technologies, and even artificial Christmas trees.
At Robins Kaplan, Prateek has served as the sole associate on trial teams for patent and copyright cases. Most notably, he was part of the trial team that secured a $42.4 million jury verdict in a landmark patent infringement case involving prelit artificial Christmas trees—reported to be the largest patent jury verdict in District of Minnesota history. For his role, Prateek was recognized as an “Attorney of the Year” by Minnesota Lawyer in 2024.
He contributes across all stages of litigation, from motion practice, discovery, and claim construction to pretrial proceedings, trial preparation, and trial. Prateek is also a registered patent attorney and prosecuted patents both before and during law school. In addition, he regularly presents on patent and copyright issues to the Minnesota legal community, including to other attorneys and members of the federal judiciary.
Before joining the firm, Prateek clerked for the Honorable C.J. Williams of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Iowa. In that role, he worked on multiple civil jury trials and gained substantial experience with motion practice and pretrial proceedings.
Prateek holds a B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Georgia Institute of Technology and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Illinois College of Law, where he published scholarship in intellectual property, served on the boards of multiple law journals, taught legal writing, and worked on patent matters at the Office of Technology Management.
As a Minnesota transplant, Prateek gives back to the community through pro bono legal representation and nonprofit work. His key efforts include representing domestic violence survivors in state court, leading fundraising efforts for the Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid Associates' Campaign, and serving on the board of the Minnesota Disability Bar Association.
Credentials
Education
- University of Illinois College of Law, summa cum laude (2021); Articles Editor, University of Illinois Law Review (2019-2021); Managing Editor, Illinois Business Law Journal (2018-2020)
- Georgia Institute of Technology, B.S. in Biomedical Engineering (2016)
Selected Results
Representative Matters
Pfizer Inc. v. SpecGx LLC, Case No. 1:24-cv-00927-CFC (D. Del.)
Represented SpecGx LLC in a Hatch-Waxman patent litigation concerning a solid oral dosage form drug, used for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and ulcerative colitis.
Willis Electric Co., Ltd., v. Polygroup Limited et al, 15-cv-3443, U.S.D.C., D. Minnesota
Trial counsel on behalf of Willis Electric in achieving a $42.4 million jury verdict in a patent litigation involving artificial Christmas trees. Our client was the inventor of an innovative technology that simplified assembly of prelit artificial Christmas trees. After an eight-day jury trial against Willis Electric’s largest competitor, we achieved a unanimous verdict in favor of Willis Electric finding the patent willfully infringed and not invalid. The damages award is believed to be the largest award for patent infringement in Minnesota history.
Recognition
- Named "Attorney of the Year," Minnesota Lawyer (2024)
- Named a "North Star Lawyer" by the Minnesota State Bar Association for providing at least 50 hours of pro bono legal services (2024)
- Rickert Award for Excellence in Academics (2021)
- Order of the Coif (2021)
- H. H. Harris Foundation Scholarship (2021)
- CALI Excellence for the Future Award: Patent Law (2019), Civil Procedure II: Conflicts of Law (2019), International Intellectual Property (2020), Disability Rights Law (2021)
- Diversity Scholarship Foundation Law Student with a Disability Award (2020)
Community
Professional
- Minnesota Disability Bar Association, Chair of Judicial Endorsements Committee
- American Bar Association
- Deaf and Hard of Hearing Bar Association (DHHBA)
- Chicago Bar Association
News & Insights
In the News
Speaking Engagements
Speeches
- IP Odyssey: Navigating the Latest Developments in Intellectual Property Law
Federal Bar Association Minnesota Chapter Intellectual Property Committee, Minneapolis, Minnesota (April 16, 2024)
Articles
- Note, The Decline and Fall of the United States’ Climate Patent Applications? U.S. Climate Patenting Behavior after the Paris Agreement Withdrawal Agreement Withdrawal Announcement, and a Fast-Track Proposal, 2021 U. Ill. L. Rev. 261 (2021).
- Kept in the Dark: The Risk of Keeping COVID-19 Vaccine Patents Secret in Nationalistic Competition, J. L. Tech. Pol.: Timely Tech (May 2020).
- Note, Reverse Engineering: Reconciling Trade Secret Law with 3D Printing and Scanning, 24 Ill. Bus. L. J. 29 (2018).
Media Mentions
- “2024 Attorneys of the Year: Willis Electric v. Polygroup,” Minnesota Lawyer (February 7, 2025)
- "Litigator of the Week Runners-Up and Shout Outs," Law.com (January 26, 2024)
Practices
Admissions
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois
- U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota
- U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
